This is one of the most effective ways for high-priced cities to provide renters with relief. It works especially well when coupled with modern on-street parking management.
Building new parking spaces can add a stunning cost to new apartment construction. In places where land is expensive, it often makes sense for developers to provide parking in underground garages rather than dedicating valuable surface area to a surface parking lot. However, each underground parking spot can cost $100,000 to build in some markets.
The expense of providing parking has become a real problem in the many cities that require each new apartment to come with one or more parking spots. Because apartment construction costs are ultimately passed on to renters, tenants have to pay hundreds of dollars in rent for car storage each month, whether they need it or not.
A worker who takes the bus may not have the option to pay for a less expensive apartment under such a mandate. A single parent who needs just one parking spot pays higher rent when mandates require two for each apartment. In places where households are willing to go carless or find creative parking solutions, major savings could be on the table if zoning allows the housing market to economize on parking.
Unfortunately, some of the cities with the most to gain — those with severe affordability challenges and robust transit service — have been slow to act.
The Cities Leading the Way
Beyond Austin, localities as diverse as San Francisco; Raleigh, N.C.; Trenton, N.J.; and Richmond, Va., have fully eliminated parking mandates. The nonprofit Parking Reform Network has identified more than 100 cities around the world that have done the same thing.
Following the removal of parking requirements in Minneapolis, the city saw a building boom of apartment buildings and a decline in rent similar to Austin’s. From 2017 to 2022, Minneapolis’ housing construction rate was three times that of the rest of Minnesota, and the city’s rents increased by 1 percent compared to 14 percent for the rest of the state. The parking requirement removal has not meant an end to parking provisions in new construction — only a reduction. New construction in Minneapolis has about 25 percent less parking per unit relative to housing built before the reform. Homebuyers and renters now have more choices. It’s easier to pay only for the parking that makes sense for them.
In 2025, legislators have drastically curtailed parking mandates statewide in Montana and Washington. In both cases, new state laws prevent cities from requiring off-street parking for most new multifamily housing. The statewide approach can cut through local political challenges, offering improved policy across large geographies.
The Laggards
The options available in Austin and Minneapolis aren’t on the table in cities like Washington, D.C., and Chicago, despite both of these cities having better transit access than almost anywhere else in the country.
In New York City, recent reforms have eliminated some parking mandates and reduced others. But while New Yorkers continue to struggle with astronomical rental costs, the city still mandates some off-street parking, even in Brooklyn neighborhoods that are dense, walkable and well-served by public transportation. Most households in Brooklyn have no cars. Even more would willingly choose to go car-free if it meant a more affordable home.
Curb Management: The Missing Piece of the Puzzle
Parking requirements emerged in response to a serious problem: Following the widespread adoption of cars in U.S. cities in the 1920s, drivers addressed their personal mobility needs by parking their vehicles in city streets, sometimes haphazardly blocking traffic and causing serious congestion problems. However, mandating private, off-street parking isn’t the only way to solve for this issue. Charging for on-street parking and enforcing existing parking rules can accomplish the same thing, especially now that cities have adjusted to the automobile.
When drivers pay a fair, demand-driven price for scarce curb space, property owners have the correct incentives to provide the amount of parking that their tenants actually need. Only cities that lack appropriate parking management would risk a return to blocked streets, frustrated drivers and political pressure to bring back their off-street mandates.
Donald Shoup, the father of parking reform, advocated for both eliminating parking requirements and appropriately managing on-street parking. He lived to see incredible progress on the first piece of his reform agenda, and hopefully the coming years will bring more progress on the second.
